Armaquest Project

44 Pages·2016·1.1 MB·English

ESCUELA TÉCNICA SUPERIOR DE INGENIERÍA
Y SISTEMAS DE TELECOMUNICACIÓN

PROYECTO FIN DE GRADO

TÍTULO: ARMAQUEST PROJECT

AUTOR: Mario Pozo Arroyo

TITULACIÓN : Grado en ingeniería de sonido e imagen

TUTOR: Toni Pippola
UNIVERSIDAD: Tampere university of applies sciences
CENTRO: Media (Finlayson Campus)
PAÍS: Finlandia

Fecha de lectura: 28 de julio de 2016

Calificación:

El Coordinador de Movilidad,
Summary / Resumen

Summary / Resumen

Este proyecto se basa en la creación de un videojuego para Smartphone y Tablet, en el cual
usaremos software de desarrollo de videojuegos como Unity3D y software de modelado en
3D como Blender entre otros. Crearemos un grupo de trabajo, con tiempos de entrega
definidos, dividiremos el trabajo focalizando los puntos fuertes de cada integrante del
equipo.
El videojuego, Armaquest, es un juego plataformas, divididos en mapas, en la que nos
meteremos en la piel de un armadillo que intenta escapar de una mazmorra maya, en la cual
habrá numerosas trampas y enemigos, al completarla obtendremos una puntuación en forma
de estrellas, dependiendo de factores como el tiempo tardado en pasarnos la fase o los
enemigos eliminados. Para ello usaremos recursos que nos ofrecen los Smartphones y
Tablets tales como los acelerómetros y la pantalla táctil.
Los objetos que se desean alcanzar con este proyecto se pueden resumir en los siguientes
puntos:
 Diseño, desarrollo e implementación de un videojuego, con su debido estudio de la
métrica, la dinámica y la estética del mismo.
 Creación y uso de un grupo de trabajo, interacción y uso de cada miembro del
equipo, equivalente a grupos de trabajo reales en compañías de producción de
videojuegos.
 Uso de herramientas tales como Unity3, Blender y Photoshop.
 Aplicación de los conocimientos adquiridos de las asignaturas ‘Game Design’,
‘Game Development’, ‘Game Business and Production’ y ‘Software Engineering’.

A lo largo del proyecto hay tres fechas claves en la que tendremos que exponer ante el tutor,
demás profesores y diseñadores de videojuegos, quienes nos podrán aconsejar y guiar (no
obstante en todo momento podremos pedir consejos y recomendaciones):
 A los 10 días aproximadamente del comienzo, se expondrá la idea general del juego y
la metodología del trabajo.
 El 8/4/2014 se expondrá una demo jugable y cuáles serán nuestros siguientes pasos.
 El 20/5/2014 exposición final del proyecto, se expondrá el videojuego totalmente
jugable.
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Summary / Resumen

This project is about videogame development for Smartphone and Tablet, in which we use
videogames development softwares such as Unity 3D, and modeling softwares such as
Blender 3D among others. We will create a workgroup with defined delivery times, and
we’ll will divide the work focusing on the strengths of each team member.
The game, Armaquest, is a platform game, divided into maps, which we will be on the skin
of an armadillo trying to escape from a Mayan dungeon, where there will be many traps and
enemies. When the level is completed a score in form of stars appears, depending on factors
such as the time taken or deleted enemies. We will use resources that Smartphones and
Tablets provide such as accelerometers and touch screen.
The aims of this project can be summarized in the following points:
 Design, development and implementation of a videogame, with its study of the
metric, dynamics and aesthetic.
 Creation and use of a workgroup, interaction and use of each team member,
equivalent to actual workgroups in videogame production companies.
 Using tools such as Unity3D, Blender and Photoshop.
 Applying the knowledge acquired from the courses ‘Game Design’, ‘Game
Development’, ‘Game Business and Production’ and ‘Software Engineering’.

Over the project there are three key dates in which we have to present to the tutor, teachers
and other video game designers who can advise and guide us (we can ask for advice and
recommendations at any time): After approximately 10 days from the start, the general idea
of the game and methodology of the work will be discussed.
 On 08/04/2014 a playable demo and our next steps will be presented.
 On 20/05/2014 the final exhibition of the project will be showed, the videogame will
be finished.

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Appreciations / Agradecimientos

Appreciations / Agradecimientos

Tan solo dar las gracias a todos los que me han apoyado en estos años de carrera, a los
profesores que realmente buscan que el alumnos aprenda, la suerte que tenemos en nuestra
escuela con el departamento de relaciones externas, ya que a diferencia muchas otras
escuelas, intentan ponérselo fácil al alumno, bien sea al solicitar un programa Erasmus o
cualquier otra cuestión.
Por supuesto dar gracias por el programa Erasmus, de vital importancia para el desarrollo
intelectual y personal de muchos alumnos.
A mi familia, mis amigos y mi novia, por apoyarme, aguantarme en los muchos disgustos
que se tiene al realizar una ingeniería.

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Index

Index

Summary / Resumen ............................................................................................................................. 3
Appreciations / Agradecimientos .......................................................................................................... 5
Index ...................................................................................................................................................... 6
1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 7
1.1 Game as a service ...................................................................................................................... 8
1.2 History ..................................................................................................................................... 10
1.2.1 Aforetime ............................................................................................................................. 10
1.2.2 Nowadays ............................................................................................................................ 16
1.2.3 Future .................................................................................................................................. 19
2. Game business ............................................................................................................................. 20
2.1 Market ..................................................................................................................................... 20
2.2 Retention ................................................................................................................................. 25
2.3 Currency .................................................................................................................................. 28
3. Game production ......................................................................................................................... 30
3.1 Project stages .......................................................................................................................... 31
3.2 The project triangle ................................................................................................................. 34
3.3 Project planning ....................................................................................................................... 35
4. Game design ................................................................................................................................ 38
4.1 Mechanic ................................................................................................................................. 40
4.2 Dynamic ................................................................................................................................... 41
4.3 Aesthetic .................................................................................................................................. 42
5. Tools ............................................................................................................................................ 44
6. Conclusions .................................................................................................................................. 45

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Introduction

1.Introduction

The video game market is growing daily; today the budget of a big video game production
can be compared with the most expensive productions of entertainment. A good example of
this kind of productions is Grand theft auto V, the second most expensive entertainment
production1. But in parallel with these big productions are a lot of proliferating small
productions, with a really small budget or none, with really small work teams or just one
member. Probably the greatest example, or surely the most popular, of this kind of video
games is Minecraft, developed by one person.
The aforementioned small productions, in part, are thanks to increasing the number of free
game engines, one of the most important tools for the developers, but they are not essential.
This project is about the steps to create a video game through an example, Armaquest, from
initial design to development through project planning, defining the tools used, with a small
work team simmilar to a real company, with weekly time-definite delivery, developing the
knowledge of each member, with cooperation between them.
Armaquest is a platforms-arcade game in a Maya/Aztec setting, designed for mobile devices.
It developed with Unity 3D software, a partially free game engine; the models are created
with Blender software, free modeling software.
In the game, the player takes the role of an armadillo. The goal of the game is to get out of a
dangerous dungeon, which is divided into levels; in each labyrinth there are treasures, traps,
enemies, etc. When the player completes the labyrinth, get a score of this level. The score
depends on the time that the player takes to finish the level, the number of found treasures
and the number of enemies killed.
To take control of the main character, the game uses the resources that the mobile device
offers, such as touch screen, and the accelerometers, providing a better gameplay experience
and increasing the player’s involvment.

1 Report of the website, WCCFTech.com
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Introduction

1.1 Game as a service

Video games are beginning to shift away from fixed length entertainment products, looking
for ways to capture and engage with an audience over the medium in the long-term, and for
ways to generate value out of this audience. This has been happening for a long time such as
through downloadable content (DLC), multiplayer, micro-transactions, free-to-play, etc.
These methods completely effect the way some games are being conceived and designed.
For a start, it’s hard to engage an audience over a long period of time if the game ends at the
end of a linear story so there also has to be a constant feed of purchasable items that the
audience finds value in monetization.
Games are becoming shops, this is due to increased sales with real money in the game.
In addition, metrics are starting to drive design (discussed later in the project), A-B testing,
heatmaps, paywalls, etc. This isn’t always a good thing, if games focus just on the economic
part since it may not be fun for the player, but there are benefits...
Today Free-to-play games have become a dominant business model as blockbusters2,
achieving sales in the hundreds of millions of dollars through micro-transaction payments for
in-game items and premium content.
Gameplay becomes the attractor, not videos, demos or other forms of traditional PR, an
engaged audience has much more power over development. Just look at CCP (crowd control
production), and in turn; developers have much better insight into what their players want,
it’s possible for games to provide more value, over a longer term, now, obviously, the
industry for this stuff is still quite young. There are a lot of companies that are focusing on
revenue extraction, at the cost of making happy customers.
Illustration 1. An example about CCP game.

2 A thing of great power or size, in particular a movie, book, or other product that is a great
commercial success.
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Introduction

Revenue extraction is largely done through artificial means: Pay Walls, a system that
prevents Internet users from accessing webpage content without a paid subscription3, hard /
Soft currencies to obfuscate pricing, psychological tricks, etc.
This can actually split the game’s players; pay to win players with a distinct advantage over
nonpaying peers.

3 A brief history of paywall, Jon Radoff.
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Introduction

1.2 History

It is difficult to briefly summarize the history of video games and this project will focus
more on the design, the production, the business and the development parts of video games.
So, a passing glance will be displayed and with a more entertaining point of view.
1.2.1 Aforetime

Games on computers date back to the start of the digital age, even computer science
academics liked to have a bit of fun with their computers, this may not seem serious, here
largely it started everything (concerning video games). Computers were rare, expensive, had
limited access, and for the most part you had to be in a university to even have access to the
majority of games that were even made, even then, you may have had to port the source code
of the game to work on the main frame your department had invested in.
Artificial Intelligence, military Simulations, NIM (a mathematical game of strategy in which
two players take turns removing objects from distinct heaps4), OXO (a computer game
developed by Alexander S. Douglas in 1952 for the EDSAC computer, which simulates a
game of Noughts and crosses5), chess was a legitimate field of study for some scientists.
By 1960 Space War was born, one of the earliest digital computer video games and one of
the most important predecessors. It is a two-player game, with each player taking control of a
starship and attempting to destroy the other. A star in the center of the screen pulls on both
ships and requires maneuvering to avoid falling into it. In an emergency, a player can
enter hyperspace to return at a random location on the screen, but only at the risk of
exploding if it is exploited.
Steve "Slug" Russell, Martin "Shag" Graetz, and Wayne Wiitanen of the fictitious "Hingham
Institute" conceived of the game in 1961, with the intent of implementing it on a DEC PDP-
1 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After Alan Kotok obtained some sine
and cosine routines from DEC, Russell began coding, and, by February 1962, had produced
his first version. It took approximately 200 hours of work to create the initial version.
Additional features were developed by Dan Edwards, Peter Samson, and Graetz6.

4 Jorgensen, Anker Helms (2009), "Context and driving forces in the development of the early computer game
Nimbi"
5 A.S.Douglas' 1952 “Noughts and Crosses game"
6 Markoff, John (June 3, 2006). "Alan Kotok, 64, a Pioneer In Computer Video Games"
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Introduction

One of the most early arcade games was Periscope by Sega Industries in 19677, was an
instant hit, achieving rapid worldwide popularly in fairly short amount of time, almost
recognizable as an Arcade machine of 70s and 80s. In the game the player take a submarine
combat, shooting boats using a periscope.

Illustration 2. Sega Periscope advertisement.

The coin operated industry worked on a pay-to-play, “rental” model, that don't have demos,
but always an “attract” screen, which showed the game being played, the exchange was
easily understood for the consumer, the client played the game for as long as its skill level
allows.
For the business owner, there are several benefits; most likely they’re renting the tables, so
reasonably maintenance cost. Expert local players attract other players, so secondary
business opportunities exist.

7 Sam Pettus; David Munoz; Kevin Williams; Ivan Barroso (20 December 2013). “Service Games: The Rise
and Fall of SEGA: Enhanced Edition”
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